It is a rose burr. If you cut open the hard green lump below the pink fuzz you will find a grub.

Sorry to butt in Bizzylizzy, but I think that is amazing, and so pretty too. Bulbaholic is very knowledgeable, I wouldn't have guessed in a hundred years.

Commonly known as Robins pincushion - its a kind of gall, caused, as Bulbaholic says, by a grub.

It's quite pretty for something created by a grub! One of Nature's surprises.

Another example would be the Oak Apple on an Oak tree.

Thanks everyone. I thought it was very pretty and I'd never seen anything like it before or since. So glad I've joined this site! I looked at facebook and blogs but they didn't appeal. Maybe the answer is to join something like this where there is a particular shared interest. Watch out for more questions, when it comes to gardens and nature I'm intensely curious! Chris.

Oh good, I like a challenge, bizzylizzie;-)